Staff diversity: sex and gender

‘Pronounced penalties’ for those early-career staff with children may explain why PhDs postpone becoming a parent, finds study

Campaigners call for institutions to commit to giving new dads six weeks off as audit reveals stark differences in entitlements across sector

Dedicated round ‘made me more comfortable being ambitious’, says Cambridge engineer – one of 600 applicants from more than 40 countries

Case against university being thrown out ‘swings pendulum’ back towards harassment protections, says legal expert

Creators hope website will help universities interpret scores more accurately and make fairer hiring and promotions decisions

Pioneer women university presidents must pave the way by becoming ‘sponsors’ of their successors

Challenging for universities to identify and punish problematic behaviour despite its effect on those targeted, finds study

Progress towards equality hampered by crackdowns on academic freedom by populist regimes, finds new study

Average pay differential widening between organisations that try to address it and those with a more hands-off approach, report suggests

‘Motherhood penalty’ sees female academics who have children less likely to secure a tenured position than their male counterparts, finds LSE study

Female scientists less likely to use comedy in conference presentations, finds study that highlights ‘absence of humour’ the norm

Universities and charities should provide at least 26 weeks’ full stipend under new charter to support female researchers, says science secretary Liz Kendall

Experts welcome milestone from THE analysis as ‘cause for cautious celebration’

Gender pay gaps worse at Australian universities than other educational institutions, as women dominate senior roles in administration but not academia

Lauded bench scientist-turned-administrator Anne Kelso reflects on gender balance, ‘keeping it real’ and why she left her ‘happy place in the lab’

We haven’t always got it right, but we should not apologise for trying to build a better society, no matter how powerful our detractors, says Keith Burnett

Reviewer bias and higher teaching workloads for women may explain why they have to wait much longer for accept or reject decisions, say study authors

Minister aims to bring academia in line with other regulated professions after outcry over harassment within universities

More than half of higher education institutions failed to improve gender pay equity last year

Even successful applications lack specificity and ambition, ignoring universities’ own data about where problems and strengths lie, says Pat O’Connor

Female researchers need ‘action’, not just ‘advice’, says high-flying scientist

Little enthusiasm for US-style crackdown as voters back initiatives such as ‘broadening the curriculum’

The three-month pause to re-examine the assessment of ‘people, culture and environment’ could prelude a welcome reversal, says Alice Sullivan

Calls for regulator action as no universities voluntarily sign up to scheme that aims to prevent ‘passing the perpetrator’

Incoming McMaster head Susan Tighe says record number of women at the top represents ‘important change’

Would-be female leaders ‘not disadvantaged by process itself’ but reluctant to put themselves forward, according to researchers

Long-running initiatives that aim to tackle issue not working, say experts, with change in approach needed

Female-only recruitment ‘part of the solution’ for male-dominated profession facing workforce ‘crisis’

Address early career ‘glass door’ as well as promotion glass ceiling, policymakers urged

Being odd one out from a celebrated merger makes it ‘easier to differentiate’, while conferring the ‘mantle of seniority’, says vice-chancellor

Research ethics and events management processes can stifle debate and restrict academic freedom, claims government-commissioned paper

When student complaints were made against a high-achieving female scientist, her institution launched a one-man inquiry that found her blameworthy merely ‘for doing my job’, she writes: a ‘textbook case of institutional gaslighting’ that was a betrayal of scientific standards

University that previously said it did ‘not wish to prevent liaisons’ introduces new rules ahead of regulatory changes

Backlash inevitable as use of single-sex spaces is restricted but Supreme Court ruling has shifted institutions’ role, says equality expert

Blurred line between staff and students could leave postgraduate researchers at greater risk

Upcoming restructure of New Zealand’s research organisations opportunity to resolve salary disparities, Kiwi scientists say

Turkish academic says women who ‘share their core values visibly’ face ‘invisible barriers’, as she recounts experience of studying in both Istanbul and London

Judge rules against Adult Human Female filmmakers who sued union over harassment claims

Adelaide University names incoming vice-chancellor as Auckland’s Dawn Freshwater announces her departure

University accused of ‘knee-jerk’ reaction to recent rulings, amid fears of more ‘massive fines’

English universities pushing to show they are serious about tackling sexual misconduct ahead of new regulatory requirements but experts say efforts still ‘patchy’

An internationally supported online institution could give hope to the country’s young women, now confined to their homes, says an Afghan scholar

OfS’ free speech director tells institutions to ensure they are meeting ‘regulatory obligations’ after Sussex fine

Government told it can ‘no longer ignore’ growing gender educational attainment gap

‘Default target’ of sex questions should be sex at birth, with ‘male’ and ‘female’ the possible answers, says government-commissioned review

Tropical disease researcher and parliamentarian Lauren Sullivan talks about difficulties of returning to the lab after a career break, juggling family, science and politics, and why Dundee’s life science sector must be supported

Adult Human Female directors Deirdre O’Neill and Michael Wayne claim union treated them unfairly in wake of cancelled Edinburgh showings

Recording gender identity but not sex perpetuates historical exclusion of women from research, paper argues

The marine biologist and new University of Melbourne vice-chancellor is intent on using insights from beneath the waves to keep her institution afloat through the brewing storms

Study finds evidence of ‘modest’ bias among reviewers covering race and gender

Number of female university leaders reaches record high, with Switzerland seeing biggest growth

Neeli Bendapudi on being an outsider and a trailblazer, students as customers and nurturing the world’s largest alumni network 

OIA says sexual misconduct investigations too often marred by delays and poor communication

Two dozen academics join ‘mainstream’ call for a health check on youth gender treatment

Data centre mogul Robin Khuda seeks ‘cohort effect’ with largest-ever gift to Australia’s oldest university

Regulator yet to conclude investigation into philosopher’s departure from Sussex despite renewed focus on free speech issues

Provocative paper claims boycott of feminist title left early career scholars high and dry while others profited from ‘moral entrepreneurship’

‘Institutions think that they can just get away with it,’ conference focused on efforts to tackle campus sexual misconduct hears

Researcher questions whether ‘care obfuscation’ is the answer to mums’ sense of exclusion

Comments from the country’s new ministers have raised concerns about the future of women’s role in education and public positions